There has been an explosion in the amateur world of triathlons the last couple years. Athletes of all shapes, sizes and abilities have been pushing their limit in everything from try-a-tris to full Ironman races. But what’s the lure of triathlons?

James Loaring, owner and head coach of Loaring Personal Coaching, has noticed a huge growth in triathlons. In fact, he pointed out many Ironman races sell out within minutes of opening registration.

“For many people triathlons are a realistic goal,” he said. “It’s a rare sport where you get all different ranges of ages, ability competing, and you get world-class professionals or those just simply with a weight loss goal lining up at the start line.

“Most people have the same goal — they just want to lead a healthy lifestyle. And triathlons offer a friendly, family oriented social environment which brings out the masses.”

Loaring said last year alone, he coached 14 local athletes for Ironman distance races. His athletes participate in everything from a try-a-tri (300-m swim, 11-km bike and 3-km run) to an Ironman (2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike and 26.2-mile run). And surprisingly, close to 75 local athletes completed Ironmans last year.

ON THE SCHEDULE

Check out these local races:

Belle River Triathlon, June 2

Leamington Triathlon*, June 15-16

Windsor Triathlon*, Aug. 10-11

* – Leamington and Windsor offer races for kids and people new to the sport.

Demographically, Loaring said the biggest boom has been with middle-aged athletes. Loaring believes this is due to the fact middle-aged people have more discretionary income and, for most, their family is grown up and they have more time to commit to the sport.

“For a lot of people it tends to be a bucket list item,” he said. “We are starting to see the growth in triathlons that we saw in marathons a few years ago. For a lot of people entering triathlons, they may have already done a marathon or half marathon and it’s next on their bucket list.”

But don’t kid yourself, triathlons have been around for years, they are not something new, they are simply becoming more popular.

John McKibbon, past chairperson Fitness for Hospice, and his family have been actively involved with triathlons in Windsor and Essex County for years. McKibbon said years ago he would drive his son and daughter around southwestern Ontario for triathlons.

In 1985, McKibbon and some other local athletes organized the first AutoMan triathlon, which attracted about 75 people. The race, now known as the Tecumseh triathlon, gets around 500 participants. In fact, McKibbon said the triathlon is a popular event for some of the best triathlete racers in the sport.

Kids of Steel, a kids triathlon, was started about 23 years ago with the Windsor St. Clair Rotary. McKibbon said many triathletes participated in Kids of Steel and now their kids are taking part. The money raised from Kids of Steel event and day camp, as well as the Tecumseh triathlon, has always gone to Hospice.

McKibbon believes triathlons have grown in popularity for one simple reason.

“People want to accomplish the three things,” he said. “It’s not easy to be efficient in all three disciplines. No matter where they want to finish in a race, the most important thing is they all have a goal.”

Colin Docherty

The Windsor Triathlon Club has been around since 2009 when Colin Docherty and a few training partners decided to form a group.

“There were about 10 people in the area that had signed up for Ironman Florida, said Docherty, president of WTC and vice-president of Triathlon Ontario. “We figured let’s have a club we can train together and get uniforms that say Windsor on it. My thought was the economy wasn’t doing very well and we just wanted to show everyone that Windsor was a great place to train, race and live. We wanted everyone to know Windsor’s a happening place.”

Docherty said triathlons are not new, especially to this area, they have just become a lot more popular. And Docherty says that shows with the WTC membership now at over 100 people. WTC prides itself on being a club for those athletes new to the sport, as well as those who have been competing for years.

“In WTC, we’ve got members who have barely run a 5 km and now want to do triathlon to people who have done multi-Ironmans,” Docherty said. “It’s a great group of people from those participating in sprint distances to full Ironmans. We have people who are going to be on Team Canada at the World Championships in London. These are people who are tops in their age groups training alongside someone who may never do more than the Belle River triathlon.”

In fact, in order to offer more to its athletes, WTC has recently paired up with Personal Best training. In January, PB president and Hall of Fame triathlon coach Barrie Shepley — along with top athletes Lionel Sanders, Brooke Brown, Sean Bechtel and WTC — held a training day for Windsor athletes.

“I think it’s definitely the Windsor attitude that has made triathlons popular, ” Docherty said. “A lot of people who are trying the sport are in their 40s and 50s. I believe it’s the personal challenge that draws people in. You understand you are not going to win the race, buts it’s a huge challenge and a huge accomplishment when you achieve it.

“It’s saying yes, I want to be able to do something beyond what I can comprehend.”

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